Explanation of "Monetary Base Statistics"

May 2013Bank of JapanResearch and Statistics Department

Basic information

Frequency of compilation : Monthly basis

Time of release : 2nd business day of the following month

Commencement of data : January 1970 (average amounts outstanding), July 1996 (amounts outstanding at end of period)
There is no continuity between the figures until March 1981 and those from April 1981.

1. Definition

The monetary base is the "Currency Supplied by the Bank of Japan" and is defined as follows.

2. Notice on usage

1)

The "Banknotes in Circulation" and "Coins in Circulation" in the monetary base include cash (banknotes and coins) held by financial institutions, while "Currency in Circulation" in the Money Stock Statistics does not. This is because the former is defined as the "Currency Supplied by the Central Bank," while the latter is defined as the "Currency Supplied to the Economy from the Financial Sector as a Whole (including the central bank)" in addition.

In order to indicate "Currency Supplied by the Bank of Japan" more precisely, "Reserve Balances" has been replaced by "Current Account Balances (Current Account Deposits in the Bank of Japan)" which includes deposits by institutions not subject to the Reserve Requirement System (tanshi companies <money market brokers-cum-dealers>, securities companies etc.)

3)

Method of adjusting the effect of changes in the reserve requirement rate

Regular revisionEvery February: the seasonally adjusted data are revised from the beginning of the data.Irregular revisionIf an error is discovered in the reported data or in the compiling process, the data are revised immediately. In principle, the data are retroactively revised, and are announced on the closest release date from when the data correction is finished.